


past, present, and future

by aliaaaaaa



Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Shark Expert Webster, Single Father Liebgott, Squishy Baby Skinny, finding love again
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-17
Updated: 2016-10-17
Packaged: 2018-08-22 22:18:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8303257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aliaaaaaa/pseuds/aliaaaaaa
Summary: “If I start dating someone will you be upset with me?” Joe whispers, cupping Wayne’s face softly and looking into his son's green eyes.

  Wayne blinks and asks nonchalantly. “Is it Shark Man?”





	

**Author's Note:**

> _People who truly loved once are far more likely to love again. - Sleepless in Seattle._

Webster always sees the father-son duo around the aquarium since he started working there 2 months ago.

_(He keeps a tally._

_They always visit the aquarium an hour before it closes, usually on Wednesdays, with the man sometimes following the boy around and explaining stuff to him._

_Sometimes the man will sit quietly on one of the benches in front of the freshwater fish tanks, staring at the black widow fishes swimming merrily.)_

He figured out that they’re related when he heard the small boy call the lanky man “dad” while excitedly pointing at the school of clown fishes in the small tank.

Today the boy is pressing his squishy face against a shark tank.

“What kind of sharks are these?” the boy asks, pointing at two sharks swimming near the glass as if they, too, are studying him.

“Those are sand tigers,” Web answers smoothly, startling both the father and son when he steps out from where he’s been standing near the octopus slide, watching the pairs.

“Sand tigers?” the boy asks again, his mouth falling open in wonder as he focuses back on the sharks. “Why don’t they have stripes?”

Both Web and the dad grin as they make eye contact.

“They’re not _that_ kind of tigers, Wayne,” the dad answers and Wayne frowns.

“Then why are they called tigers?” Wayne demands, looking up at Web; his eyes blazing with curiosity.

Web crouches down on Wayne’s level and explains, “Well, rumor has it they’re called sand tigers because of their teeth.”

Web points at one of the sharks, as it swims slowly near to where Web is crouching. Its mouth opens to expose its long, needle-like teeth. “See those teeth? They’re sharp just like a tigers’.”

Wayne presses his face closer to the glass, his mouth opens too as the shark swims nearer.

“Do they bite?” the boy asks, and Web sees the dad smiling from the corner of his eyes.

“They do if you attack them first,” Web replies. “But usually they’re pretty docile. They let you pet them if you’re nice to them.”

Wayne slowly turns to face Webster and it’s such a comical sight that Web cannot suppress his grin.

“You can pet sharks?” Wayne whispers in awe, his green eyes big and wide as he stares at Web.

“Yeah! Because I feed them. So they know me,” Web confirms. He looks up to see the dad biting his lip in an attempt to stop himself from smiling, but Web can see the corner of his lips tugging up.

“Dad!” Wayne yells and turns around to face his dad. “Did you hear that? He swims with sharks! Isn’t that cool?”

The dad is grinning widely now, all gleaming teeth as he ruffles Wayne’s hair.

“Yeah, I heard him,” the dad replies, brown eyes focusing on Webster. “And I think it’s pretty cool too that he’s brave enough to swim with the sharks.”

Web smiles at the compliment.

“Can I swim with sharks too?” Wayne asks, his small fingers tugging on his dad’s pants.

“I don’t know, buddy,” the dad replies, taking Wayne’s hand in his and Web notices that he’s not wearing a ring on his finger.

“Why not?” Wayne pouts and Web takes Wayne’s free hand to get his attention.

“Because not all sharks are docile and friendly,” Web answers when Wayne turns his face to look at him. “Plus you need to study about all the sharks in the sea before you get to swim with them.”

Wayne pouts even more and blinks slowly. Web looks up at the dad when he sees him stroke Wayne’s squishy face.

“Tell you what,” Web says, leaning in closer as Wayne looks at him with wide eyes.

“Why don’t you come by on Wednesday next week? I’ll be doing a demonstration on how to pet a shark and I need a willing audience. That is, if your dad allows you to participate?”

Web glances at the dad who is looking back at him to see his brown eyes turning almost amber in the reflecting lights.

Wayne turns to look at his dad too and Web can only imagine his eyes getting rounder in an attempt to persuade his dad to let him come next week.

The method is probably working because Web can see the dad’s crumbling before his eyes, how he sighs heavily before he murmurs a soft “why not” which makes Wayne shriek in happiness before throwing his skinny arms around his dad’s leg.

“Only if you are a good boy and brush your teeth before and after you sleep, _and_ you memorize your multiplication tables.” The dad lays down his rules and Wayne nods excitedly, agreeing to do all of it while pressing his face into his dad’s.

“Thank you! Thank you! I love you!” Wayne beams and the dad shakes his head, smiling at his son’s antics before slapping his butt and asking him to go wait at the front.

Before he goes, Wayne turns around and hugs Web tightly, and Web can feel the excitement coursing through the tiny body when he says, “Bye Shark Man! I’ll see you next week!”

With that, Wayne skips to the front, yelling out his excitement while Web and the dad watch him go.

The dad looks at Web again and clears his throat as they both stand up. “Sorry about that. My son can be a bit excited.”

“It’s fine, really. He’s a good kid. I love his enthusiasm,” Web reassures the dad and it’s ridiculous for him to keep referring to this man as “the dad” so he holds out his hand and introduces himself.

“I’m David Webster”.

The dad looks at Web’s face; his brown eyes boring into Web’s blue before they fall to Web’s extended hand. He grips Web’s hand firmly and shakes it.

“I’m Joe. Nice to meet you, Shark Man,” Joe replies playfully and Web feels something like a tsunami crashing in his chest when he sees the smile on Joe’s face.

*

The next Wednesday sees Joe and Wayne at the aquarium earlier than usual. Joe, Web notices, is wearing a button down shirt and slacks; probably taking the rest of the day off from work to bring Wayne to the aquarium after school. Wayne is bouncing on his feet,  looking around excitedly at the crowds that have started to fill the space, holding his dad’s hand and absent-mindedly swinging it.

“All set up?”

Web turns his head and sees Hoobler walking towards him wearing half of a shark costume; he’s carrying the head part underneath his armpit.

“We have another 6 minutes before Nix gives us the signal,” Web replies, already fussing with Hoob’s costume and adjusting the fin so it stays in place.

“Is the man of your dreams here?” Hoob asks, grinning when Web rolls his eyes at him.

“He’s not the man of my dreams, Hoob. He’s probably happily married and has a pretty wife waiting for him at home,” Web replies, taking the shark’s head and carefully slipping it on Hoob’s head.

“Hey, you said it yourself he doesn’t wear a ring,” Hoobs reminds his friend, his voice muffled by the thick material of the shark’s head.

“Still doesn’t make him the man of my dreams,” Web grumbles and barely avoids the flappy pectoral fin aimed at him because Hoob is trying to make his point.

But his attempt is shut down when they hear the familiar voice of Lewis Nixon reminding the visitors that “Shark Lagoon will be opening in 3 minutes, so please behave yourself and don’t squeeze the baby sharks or else you’ll be in big trouble with our resident shark expert, David Webster, for harming his children.”

Web rolls his eyes and guides Hoob to walk out from their small office section and the crowds cheer as soon as they see the mascot waving around and doing weird flappy dances.

“Hi, everyone! I’m David Webster and welcome to The Winters-Nixon Aquarium.” Web greets the crowds and everyone claps their hands.

From where he’s standing, he can see Joe smiling at him and Wayne beaming happily while tugging at his dad’s sleeve.

“Just a few reminders, when you’re petting the baby sharks, please do so gently. Use two fingers-” Web holds two fingers up, “-and gently strokes their bellies instead of the tails. You don’t want to startle them.”

He then steps next to the small tank and scoops up a baby shark with leopard print on its skin. The baby wiggles before settling in and Web demonstrates to the crowds how to stroke the belly gently.

Joe watches Web interacting with them.

Web, in Joe’s opinion, looks happy. His ocean blue eyes brighten up when he gently holds the baby shark. He smiles when the baby shark wiggles playfully while its belly is being stroked, and Joe thinks Web has a nice smile but his musing is interrupted when he feels a small hand tugging at his sleeve to get his attention.

“Dad, you’re staring,” Wayne says.  His green eyes blink innocently at his dad., But there’s nothing innocent about his knowing smile.

“I’m not staring,” Joe tries to deny it, but Wayne’s smile turns into a full blown grin when he says “Uh-huh.”

Joe gently smacks his son’s head and when he looks at Web, the shark expert is already looking at him.

“Who wants to pet the baby sharks?” Web asks, replacing the baby shark back to the tank and the space is erupted by tiny voices saying _“Me! Me! Me!”_ but Web’s eyes are zeroed in on Wayne and he beams when he sees Wayne bouncing on his feet, waving both arms in the air and nearly slapping his dad’s handsome face.

“Alright, can I have the boy in the blue ‘I Love Sharks’ shirt to come to the front,” Web announces, pointing at Wayne so that the aquarium personnel can escort him to the front. He smiles when he hears the familiar happy shrieks and from the corner of his eyes, he sees Hoob looking at him, waving his pectoral fins around.

He ignores Hoob and focuses on Wayne who is beaming at him like he’s Santa. Web rolls up Wayne’s long sleeve, carefully folding it until he reaches the elbow. Then he crouches down and pushes Wayne to stand in front of the tank.

“Alright, just dip your hand nice and easy. Don’t make any sudden moves, okay?” Web instructs and Wayne follows his orders A small noise of delight escapes him when his fingers touch the warm water.

“Stroke its belly gently. Yes. That’s good,” Web praises and Wayne strokes the baby shark’s belly gently with his fingers, giggling when he lifts his face to look at his dad.

“Dad! I’m touching a shark!”

Joe grins, his chest feels warm from seeing Wayne’s happy face watching the way Web kindly guides his son makes his belly flutter with butterflies.

“How did it feel when you touched the shark?” Web asks when Wayne pulls back his hand, letting Web dab it dry.

“Slimy. Like jelly!”

The crowds laugh and Web grins, thinking to himself that Wayne is such a ray of sunshine, a bright kid with infectious enthusiasm. Web pulls Wayne towards the back when the aquarium personnels let the other visitors crowd the big tank.

“You did a good job petting the baby shark,” Web tells Wayne, and the boy grins at him before he turns his attention to the shark mascot.

“Can I hug you?” Wayne asks, his arms already reaching out to Hoob and the mascot bends down his body a bit to receive the hug and he pats Wayne’s head affectionately, looking at Webster. Web doesn’t need to see Hoob’s face to know that his best friend is grinning widely at him.

“Thank you,” a voice says to Web’s left and he turns to see Joe standing next to him, giving him a small smile. “I think you’ve made his week by letting him pet the shark.”

Web grins and looks at Wayne who is currently holding Hoob’s pectoral fin, talking to the other kids and comparing notes about touching the baby sharks.

“He’s a bright kid. Must have gotten it from his dad,” Web replies, grinning when Wayne enthusiastically waves the fin back and forth.

“Nawh, he got that from his mom,” Joe replies back.

Web watches Joe watching him. He doesn’t wanna admit it, but he feels something in his belly twist knowing that Joe is married.

“She must be proud to have a smart boy like Wayne,” Web says.

“I think she would definitely be proud of him.”

“Would?”

Joe glances at Web before his eyes settle on watching his son, still talking enthusiastically with the other kids.

“She passed away two years ago,” Joe answered, his voice wistful.

“I’m so sorry, Joe,” Web apologizes.

He _is_ sorry for bringing it up because now Joe looks sad, the twist on his lips looks regretful.

“It’s fine. It was–” Joe stops talking and smiles sadly at Web. “Thank you for being nice to him. He likes you. A lot. And he couldn’t stop talking about sharks after we got home last week.”

Web looks at Joe and opens his mouth as if he’s about to say something, but he doesn’t know what he is supposed to say because Joe’s face is still clouded with sadness. It makes Web’s chest feel tight, but he also doesn’t want to make things more awkward between them so he settles on calling Wayne.

The boy shuffles closer to where Web and Joe are standing after waving goodbye to Hoob, who waves back while giving him a flying kiss.

“Wayne,” Web says, crouching down in front of Wayne while he unpins something from his shirt. “I want you to have this.”

Web pins a badge on Wayne’s shirt and the boy looks down to inspect it.

“What is it?”

Web thumbs the small silver shark metal badge and looks at Wayne’s squishy face. “It’s a shark badge. My mom gave it to me when I was your age. She bought it for me because I loved sharks so much.”

“Web,” Joe says but Web ignores him and continues talking to Wayne.

“I want you to have it because I know you love sharks too. Can you take care of Pat for me?”

“You named your metal shark _Pat_?” Joe asks incredulously and Web glances to glare at him.

“I’ll have you know, Pat is a cute name for a shark, okay?” Web answers, and he resists the urge to stick out his tongue at Joe.

He looks back at Wayne and the boy is still looking at the badge.

“Can I really have this?” he asks, looking at his dad then at Web.

“Yeah! He’s yours now!” Web beams at Wayne who smiles back at him before he tumbles into Web’s arms, hugging Web with all of his might and his eyes closed tight and Web holds Wayne in his arms.

And Joe feels like something in his chest has been tapped open when he sees Web move to wrap his arms around Wayne’s skinny frame just as tightly, fingers softly gliding into his son’s hair.

He doesn’t wanna say it’s love because he has forgotten what that feels like after his wife’s death, but it’s _something_ because it’s making his chest loosen up and the butterflies in his belly are flapping their wings madly.

*

“Did you brush your teeth?”

Joe asks, padding softly into Wayne’s room before getting into the narrow bed with his son.

Wayne, who is already in his pjs and is currently holding the shark badge underneath the light that it reflects on his squishy face, answers, “Yeah and I washed my face and hands too.”

“Good boy,” Joe praises and settles in next to his son.

There’s something he wants to talk to Wayne about but he doesn’t know how to break it to him.

“Hey so, I wanna talk to you about something,” Joe starts and Wayne only glances at him before he reverts back his attention to the badge, shifting his body so that he’s facing his dad.

“If I start dating someone will you be upset with me?” Joe whispers, cupping Wayne’s face softly and looking into his green eyes.

Wayne blinks and asks nonchalantly. “Is it Shark Man?”

“How’d you know?”

Wayne looks at his dad’s face and rests his chin on his hand. “Because you look happy when you’re around him.”

“We’ve only met him twice,” Joe says, more to himself than his son, trying to convince himself that dating someone new is such a bad idea.

“But you smiled in those times more than you did before,” Wayne explains, pressing his forehead close to his dad. “And you look at him like you looked at mom.”

Joe gathers Wayne in his arm, presses a soft kiss on his son’s forehead. “You still remember her?”

“Yeah,” Wayne whispers, pressing his face into the crook of his dad’s neck. “I remember she used to bake cookies for school but they turned out hard as a rock. And I remember her watching the TV and saying bad words at it then she turned around and saw me standing there and she cursed again then she gave me ice cream and told me not to tell Grandma Evie.”

Joe smiles wistfully.

He feels both sad and happy that Wayne still remembers his mom. Happy because at least he has fond memories of her. Sad because gradually Wayne will forget some things as he grows up.

“Your mom was a great woman. She was very sweet and tough at the same time. Like she could kick my butt anytime because she’s strong,” Joe murmurs.

“Strong like Grandma Evie?”

“Yeah, strong like Grandma Evie. I knew she was the one for me when I looked at her for the first time and I got sucked into her eyes. It felt like coming home,” Joe continues and Wayne headbutts his head gently.

“Did you feel like that with Shark Man?”

Joe puts his palm over his chest and tries not to feel guilty when he whispers a soft “Yeah.”

When there’s no respond from his son, Joe smoothes out the blanket and presses a soft kiss on top of Wayne’s hair before murmuring “Love you.”

*

_Fact_.

Joe Liebgott hasn’t dated anyone since his wife passed away two years ago.

_Fact_.

Joe Liebgott had only ever kissed a handful of guys back in college.

_Fact_.

Joe Liebgott is about to ask a man to go out on a date after two years of staying single and he is nervous as hell.

And it doesn’t help that Web sees him first and is giving him a soft smile that makes his blue eyes light up the whole room.

“Hi,” Web greets easily and Joe can only manage to grin at him because his heart is about to burst out and his palm is sweating and he is sure that if he tries to talk, no words will come out.

“Wayne’s not here today?” Web asks, turning his head around to look for the boy.

“He… uh… he’s at my mom’s,” Joe croaks out his response and Web looks at him weirdly and Joe is sure he’s already blew his chance to ask Web out.

“You okay? You look… nervous.”

“I’m fine! Hey, wanna grab coffee?” Joe asks and before Web can reply, Joe has already walked towards the aquarium café, inwardly cursing himself for being too fucking awkward like a teenager about to ask his crush to the prom.

They get their coffees and sit at the patio table outside overlooking the ocean. Here Joe thinks that the ocean is no match to Webster’s blue eyes who are currently zeroed in on him.

Joe sips his coffee slowly, gathering up his courage to ask Web out but before he opens his mouth to talk, Web beats him to it.

“I’m sorry,” Web says and Joe looks up, puzzled as to why Web is sorry.

Does he know that Joe is about to ask him out on a date? Oh God, Web is apologizing because Joe is about to ask him out and he cuts to the chase and is saying no now.

“About your wife,” Web continues and Joe feels the tensed muscles on his shoulders relaxed.

“I brought her up and it made you sad the other day, and I didn’t mean to do that. So, I apologize.”

Joe blinks and offers Web a soft smile. “You did nothing wrong. It’s just… Well, it’s been two years already and by now I should have moved on but ya know… I still miss her and it made me a bit sad that she couldn’t see Wayne grow up.”

Web nods his head in understanding. “I understand. You won’t be able to forget someone who had been in such a great part of your life no matter how long ago.”

“I should’ve moved on,” Joe says. “My therapist asked me to go out on dates but I haven’t been on a date since she passed away. It didn’t feel right.”

“Not even a random hook-up?” Web asks curiously.

“Nawh. When you’re suddenly a single father to a rambunctious son, everything just stops being about you and it’s all about not fucking things up when you’re raising a child.”

“But you’re doing a good job with Wayne from what I can tell,” Web reassures Joe, his soft tone makes Joe smiles.

“Which is why I think it’s time for me to start dating again because I just got a green light from him,” Joe explains quietly, looking into Web’s blue eyes, trying to communicate with his eyes to make Web understand that he’s being asked out on a date.

“That’s good!” Web beams. “Have you found someone you’re interested in yet?”

“I have and I think I’m ready to ask that person out,” Joe replies, his heart hammering wildly in his chest when Web keeps smiling at him. “So, will you go out on a date with me?”

Web gapes at Joe.

“We won’t go anywhere fancy. Just dinner at my house with Wayne there,” Joe continues quickly when Web is still gaping at him.

“I make awesome apple pie,” Joe tries once more and he’s about to say sorry and to tell Web to forget about the whole thing.

But–

“You wanna date me?” Web asks.

“Yeah,” Joe replies softly.

“Why?”

Joe looks at the man sitting across him, how his blue eyes look so bright in the sun and he is sure that he is swimming in the ocean now. “Because when I first saw you, I felt something in me. And I haven’t felt like that since I met my wife. Plus, you’re really nice to Wayne and you never once dismissed his questions.”

Web blinks his eyes and Joe feels like he’s been splashed by the sea.

“I thought…” Web bites his lip. “I sorta have a crush on you too when I keep seeing you around the aquarium every Wednesday. I thought that I might go introduce myself but then I saw Wayne and I heard him call you ‘dad’ so I didn’t go through with the plan.”

Web gazes into Joe’s brown eyes.

“Then I saw you didn’t wear a ring and I thought well maybe I had a chance after all but then I found out about your wife and I told myself ‘no way he would agree to go out with me’.”

“And now here we are, with me asking you out and I haven’t done this in years so I am rusty but I would love to take you to a nice dinner at my house.”

Web gnaws the inside of his cheek and Joe feels like his heart is about to burst.

“Apple pie, huh?” Web says, his mouth tugs up into a smile.

“I stole the recipe from my mom,” Joe whispers conspirally and he grins when he sees Web trying to hide his smile.

“Alright. I’ll bring the wine,” Web agrees and Joe feels the familiar butterflies’ wings flapping inside his belly.

*

Webster arrives at Joe’s house exactly at 7 in the evening, where the sun is just about to set and the skies are painted in pink and purple.

He is greeted by Wayne who hugs his leg briefly before dragging him inside by his sleeve. Yelling, “DAD! SHARK MAN IS HERE!”

Joe comes out from the kitchen and stops short when he sees Web standing in the middle of his living room.

“Hey,” Joe greets, walking towards Web and takes the bottle of wine from Web’s hand before leaning in to kiss him on the cheek. “You look great.”

Web blushes not because of the compliment but from the soft brush of Joe’s lips against his cheek and he can feel his face getting warmer by the second.

“You look nice too. I love your shirt by the way,” Web clears his throat and he gives Joe a once over. Joe _does_ look great in a soft band t-shirt and a pair of fitting jeans. “You look 10 years younger in this outfit.”

Joe laughs. “What? Do I look like an old man in work shirts and trousers?”

“A handsome old man,” Web replies smoothly and Joe rolls his eyes at him.

“Oh yeah! I brought Wayne something,” Web remembers and he pulls out a thick book from his sling bag and calls for Wayne.

The boy comes out from where he’s hiding behind the wall and walks shyly into the living room.

“I went through my old stuff and I found this picture book on sharks. Thought you might wanna have it,” Web presents the book to Wayne who takes it with an awe expression etched on his face.

“This is so awesome!” Wayne hollers in delight and he looks at his dad and asks if he can go and read the book.

“Say ‘thank you’,” Joe reminds his son and Wayne hugs Web tightly and says his thanks before leaving the adults alone.

“You know, I think at this point we have already established the fact that he already likes you. So you don’t have to bribe him,” Joe teases Web, elbowing him lightly.

“Gotta get on his good grace if tonight’s date turns out to be good. Gotta secure a second date with his dad,” Web answers and Joe bites his lower lip, a pleased expression etched on his face before he turns around to go to the kitchen.

“I gotta go finish making dinner. Make yourself at home!”

Web walks around to study the house. In every corner there are high shelves filled with neatly organized comic books.

There is a workstation by the big window and Web notices blueprints of houses and buildings haphazardly stacked on top of each other and he studies Joe’s neat plan drawing before he feels a tug on his sleeve.

“Wanna go see my room?” Wayne asks and Web beams at him, following the boy into his room and Web grins so wide when he sees the shark bedsheet on Wayne’s bed.

“Did you ask your dad to buy this for you?”

“No, Uncle Toye gave it to me for Hanukkah last year. He said that I won’t get any nightmares because the sharks will protect me,” Wayne answers, already climbing to lie down on his bed before patting the vacant spot next to him.

Web gets into the bed too, his long legs dangling over the narrow bed as he looks up at the constellation drawing on the ceiling.

“Dad drew that for you?” Web points to the ceiling and Wayne nods.

“He did it with Uncle Babe and Uncle Don when we first moved here,” Wayne answers and shifts his tiny body to face Web.

“Are you gonna make my dad happy?” Wayne asks, and Web turns his face to look into Wayne’s green eyes.

“I hope I can. I know I will try my best to make him happy,” Web reassures Wayne and the boy seems satisfied with the answer because he hugs Web sideway.

“He already looks happy whenever you are around. I’m sure you will do a good job,” Wayne murmurs and there’s a catch and release sensation in Web’s chest when he feels the boy’s brushing his squishy cheek against his shoulder.

Web wants to tell Wayne that if Joe allows it, he will stay to make Joe happy and that he understands that Joe will always love his wife. He wants to tell Wayne that he’s not there to replace his mom but he’s there to make them both happy in anyway he can.

But before he can verbalize his thoughts, Joe appears at the doorway, casually leaning against the door.

“Dinner’s ready, boys,” Joe says, internally cooing at the sight of Wayne cuddling Web in bed.

“I don’t know, this bed is so warm and the sharks make me feel safe,” Web murmurs, his voice already has that sleepy quality tone to it and it makes Joe bite the inside of his cheek to stop himself from thinking dirty thoughts with his son being in the same room.

“Come on. Up! I made a lot of food and you two should help me finish them,” Joe pulls Web up by his arm and Wayne whines from being jolted from Web’s shoulder.

In the end, Joe manages to drag them into the kitchen, but not without hearing some grumbling.

“He’s already defying my order. Clearly, you’re a bad influence to my son,” Joe complains, but his bright smile belies the words when he looks at Web.

“Am I a bad influence to you?” Web asks Wayne, who shakes his head and declares that Web is the coolest shark person on earth much to the delight of Webster.

After that, dinner goes by smoothly.

Wayne keeps asking Web questions related to sharks and he patiently answers everything; not once snapping at Wayne for talking too much. By the time they’ve finished with Joe’s awesomely made apple pie, Wayne is rubbing his eyes vigorously as if to stave off the sleepiness from his system.

But Joe is having none of that.

Web watches Joe gently carries his son to the bedroom despite Wayne’s small protest; wanting to talk more with Mr. Shark.  “Say goodnight to Web,” Joe orders softly, and Wayne reaches out his hand for Web to touch.

“Nightnight, buddy,” Web murmurs and Wayne replies with a small _“Nightnight”_ before pressing his face unto his dad’s shoulder.

*

When Joe gets back to the kitchen, he notices that the table has been cleared and Web is washing the dishes. He moves to stand next to Web; taking the dry cloth from the rack and begins to wipe the wet dishes. Their shoulders keep bumping and brushing every time they move and Joe feels a sense of contentment that he hasn’t felt in a long time.

Just the act of being like this with Web, doing mundane things with him makes Joe happy and that in itself is a luxury that he’s willing to spend on now.

“You’re not wrong about making the best apple pie,” Web comments after he is done washing the last of plates; Joe hands him the cloth to wipe his soaked hands.

“I’m never wrong,” Joe replies, turning his body sideway to face Web. “And I think I’m not gonna be wrong about you.”

Web feels his heart hammering wildly when Joe lifts his hand to caress his face softly, from his cheeks to the bridge of his nose up to his eyebrows before he brushes Web’s lips softly with his thumb.

“When I first saw you, I was mesmerized by your eyes. They’re so blue,” Joe murmurs. “I felt like I was drowning in them but it felt like I was floating too. It felt like… magic.”

Joe leans in closer until his nose is brushing with Web’s.

“Is this okay?” Joe asks, his warm breath ghosting against Web’s mouth and when Web nods his permission, Joe presses a soft kiss on Web’s lips, a gentle brush of mouth against mouth. A soft noise tumbles out from Web and he closes his eyes because he is feeling too much. Even when the kiss is so soft and brief, it still steals his breath away, and when Joe pulls back, he reopens his eyes, bright blue meeting soft brown.

Joe takes a shuddering breath when he pulls back slowly, pressing more tiny kisses along Web’s jawlines before he presses his face against Web’s chest, inhaling Web’s expensive cologne and letting it wrap around him; calming his nerves.

“It’s been years since I last kissed someone,” Joe confesses; his voice muffled by the material of Web’s turtleneck. “I’ve forgotten how nice it feels.”

Web laughs softly, wraps his arms around Joe’s skinny frame and holds him tight as Joe brushes his cheek on Web’s chest.

“I’m scared,” Joe whispers.

“Of what?” Web asks, his palm gliding calmly against Joe’s back.

“It’s been so long since I last dated and it’s my first time dating a man and I’m afraid. What if I fuck things up with you?” Joe asks quietly. “What if you end up hating me because I can’t forget my wife?”

“Hey.” Web cups Joe’s face gently and leans down to kiss his forehead; caressing Joe’s cheek softly. “I don’t care if you still love your wife. I won’t get jealous. She will always be your first love. Nothing can erase that, Joe. And I don’t plan to erase that too. I’m willing to try this with you if you are willing. We’ll focus on the now and just let everything falls into places.”

“Will you promise that you won’t let me drown? That you will keep me afloat?”

Web leans down to press a kiss on Joe’s mouth; harder this time as if he’s showing his determination to make things work between them.

“I’ll try my best to make you happy, Joe. I’ll try my best to keep you afloat; you have me always to hold on to,” Web promises and Joe smiles at him; hugging Web tightly to him.

They don’t know what will happen in the future. They don’t have any ideas how things will turn out and Joe is still scared but slowly he will learn to let go; slowly he will learn to trust Web because Web will always be there for him, through thick and thin. Through sunshine and rain.

But for now, in Joe’s small kitchen, with Web pressing soft kisses on his lips; with them holding each other; this moment is enough for them.

**Author's Note:**

> If you've arrived until this point then thank you so much for reading! I hope you've enjoyed this because I had a great time writing it! Thanks for my beta-readers, [Aria](http://liebgottshersheybar.tumblr.com/) and [JD](http://hbo-war.tumblr.com/)! 
> 
> Kudos and comments are very much appreciated!


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